Maddow and Trump Critics Drive MSNBC Primetime Ratings Spike

The typical MSNBC viewer probably isn’t a big fan of Donald Trump, but the president is going to become quite popular among network executives if ratings continue to grow during the Trump administration.

MSNBC’s primetime lineup grew a whopping 82 percent during the month of April compared to April 2016 as the network continues to hold Trump accountable. Among the key demo of adults age 25-54, MSNBC grew 61 percent during the primetime hours of 8-11 p.m.

“The Rachel Maddow Show” led the way, finishing April as the sixth most-watched cable news show overall and second-most watched in the demo. Maddow averaged 2.4 million total viewers and 562,000 in the demo, trailing only a variety of Fox News programs.

The network also grew its audience significantly among total day viewers, gaining 66 percent overall and 40 percent among the key demo.

Trump has been good for cable news in general, but MSNBC’s viewership increase is significant. Rival CNN gained 17 percent in total day viewers and 31 percent in the key demo, but lost primetime viewers compared to April 2016 when the network was loaded with primary debates, town halls and coverage.

Year to-date, “The Rachel Maddow Show” is the fastest-growing primetime show in cable news.

The show that is often praised by President Trump dominates cable news morning shows, averaging 376,000 demo viewers while MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” averaged 182,000 and CNN’s “New Day” picked up 205,000 in the same category.

Don Lemon’s nightly show is technically tied with No. 12 “Outnumbered,” but we broke the tie by looking at total viewers, as opposed to the demo. Both programs averaged 381,000 demo viewers, but “Outnumbered” averaged 2 million total viewers compared to 1.1 million for “CNN Tonight.”

Bill O’Reilly continues to absolutely dominate the cable news landscape, averaging 728,000 demo viewers. When adding in the 8 p.m. ET airing with the late-night replay, “Factor” racks up more than 1 million viewers between the ages 25-54 every night.